PLAYERS GUIDE

The ship is fueled. The cargo is loaded. The crew of the automated Company cargo hauler Fortune goes back to the corporate compound to say its goodbyes... ...and walks right into an ambush. Bombs explode in the Company offices and in the streets outside. Alien monsters escapeor are let loosefrom the R&D lab. A city in turmoil stands between the crew and escape. The streets are prowled by gunmen and aliens. The crew must board the ship in the nearby starport and tell its computer to take off for Earth. No road is safe. No backup is coming. They are not trained for this. AND ONLY ONE WILL SURVIVE.

Writing & Design by Will Hindmarch Based on Lady Blackbird by John Harper Playtesters: Sara Johnson, Zach North, Asa Sherill, Jeff Sherill

Influences: John Harper, Ridley Scott, James Cameron, David Fincher, David Twohy, William Gibson, Dan OBannon, Ronald Shusett, Vincent Ward, David Giler, Walter Hill, Larry Ferguson, Fred Hicks, Rob Donoghue

This document is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial Share Alike 3.0 license. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/us/ Contact: will.hindmarch@gmail.com Version: 0.93.21.10

Declared an emergency state by the Interstellar Colonial Commission, Agamemnon is regarded by the Company as a failed colony, a renegade backwater, and an investment in need of liquidation. A mix of indentured colonial workers and Company representatives made the place, once, a stable and prosperous factory city and starport. When the Company pulled out its hardware factories following the reduced Marine presence on-planet, the economy buckled. A brief attempt by the Company to prop up the colony with a biotech R&D lab failed. The Company, finding the planet too far off of modern space lanes, began the process of shutting down the world, leaving countless colonists without jobs or livelihoods. Many of them turned to growing illegal hybridized narcotics crops and trading with black-market ships, which lead to sanctions and a revocation of the planets official Interstellar Commission insurance coverage. The Marines pulled out rather than fight an aimless ground war with desperate colonists over a planet that nobody wanted anyway. Now the Company is pulling out the last of its biotech staff and abandoning its urban fortress at the heart of the colony citys walled-in so-called Safe Zone. It does so not amidst the angry protests they expected, but amidst an armed backlash from the abandoned colonists who, unable to obtain expensive passage off planet, obtained guns. The city of Port Hellas is now rife with violence. Armed colonists prowl the streets looking for Company targets or hostages. The Safe Zone has become a war zone.

PLANET AGM-299 Agamemnon

Agamemnon is a bright planet, terraformed into snowy steppes lit by a cool sun almost too brilliant for human eyes to handle. At night, the planet sinks into star-lit gloom beneath a moonless sky. Its warm in the sun, cold in the dark, and comfortable only with practice. Each square represents about a city block of the Safe Zone. Each square may also contain either an obstacle or a rest area, as the Narrator deems fit. Most squares should contain obstacles. Characters may be able to scout a square, identifying the next obstacle without triggering it outright, depending on the obstacle. The main thoroughfares are clear and open enough to allow players to spot obstacles two spaces away, but are subject to frequent ambushes by militia patrols. Rest areas are rare there. The heart of the Safe Zone is a warren of narrow streets, difficult to scout but easier to hide in. Somewhere underground, beneath the sprawl northeast of the Company compound, is the R&D lab, where the aliens were freed. REST AREAS Rest areas are squares without any obstacles in them. The Narrator should reveal rest areas when characters are adjacent to them, before the current squares obstacle is overcome. Rest areas are safe ground for refreshment scenes, or simply an opportunity to move forward without an obstacle to overcome. Examples of rest areas include: An abandoned apartment, a veterinary clinic, an out-of-business cinema, an empty garage, a sealed-up storefront, spillover Company offices.

on the ground

 RULES SUMMARY
Rolling the Dice When you try to overcome an obstacle, you roll dice. Start with one die. Add a die if you have a trait that can help you. If that trait has any tags that apply, add another die for each tag. Finally, add any number of dice from your personal pool of dice (your pool starts with 7 dice). Roll all the dice youve gathered. Each die that shows an even number is a hit. You need hits equal to the difficulty level (usually 3) to pass the obstacle. When the roll is complete, discard the pool dice you used. Dont worry, you can get them back. If the roll was a success, you can proceed. If not, conditions may ease or escalate, and the obstacle continues to block your path. Either go around or try again. Difficulty Levels 2 = easy, 3 = difficult, 4 = challenging, 5 = extreme Helping If your character is in a position to help another character, you can give them a die from your pool. Say what your character does to help. If the roll fails, you get your pool die back. If it succeeds, your die is lost. BATTLE A battle is a special kind of obstacle in which your character is subject to damage. In a battle, your character suffers damage equal to the difference between his hits and the difficulty level of the obstacle. This diminishes the difficulty level of the obstacle by the number of hits as well. So, a level-5 alien monster requires five hits to overcome, and a three-hit roll against such a beast would deal 2 points of damage to your character in a counterattack. Deal with the beast with one decisive five-hit roll and your character would suffer no damage. Damage subtracts from Health. When your character runs out of Health, describe a fittingly gruesome (and heroic?) demise. Advancement When one of your characters three bullet points comes into play to the satisfaction of the Narrator, you earn an Advancement. Circle one of your characters bracketed tagsit is now available for use. Once all three of your bullet points have been suitably dramatized, you can begin using them again to earn additional advancements. Refresh Refresh your pool back to 7 dice by playing a refreshment scene with another character. This is a good time to dramatize your characters bullet points. Refreshment scenes can be flashbacks, too. DEATH When your character dies, your player pool immediately refreshes. You may still help living characters using the Helping rule. Add a detail or benefit to the scene description and roll your die.

THERE CAN BE ONLY ONE SURVIVOR.

BRACE
HEALTH O O O O O O O O O O
FLIGHT OFFICER EMPLOYED BY COMPANY FOR 2 YEARS NO LIFE OUTSIDE OF SPACE TRAVEL PACIFIST (UP TO TODAY) PILOT Evasion | Steady | Alert | Drive [Maneuvering] | [Repair] COMPANY AGENT Loyal | Proper | Medium Clearance | Make it Work [High-Level Clearance] | [Computer Mastery] UNFLAPPABLE Fast | Reliable | Good Eye | Clear-Thinking [Shit, Thats Fast] | [Serene] BRAINY Think It Through | Informed | Anticipate Portable Terminal | [Surmise] | [Quick]

CONDITIONS O O O O O O
LOST CORNERED CRAZED HUNTED TAPPED DEAD

 RULES SUMMARY
Rolling the Dice When you try to overcome an obstacle, you roll dice. Start with one die. Add a die if you have a trait that can help you. If that trait has any tags that apply, add another die for each tag. Finally, add any number of dice from your personal pool of dice (your pool starts with 7 dice). Roll all the dice youve gathered. Each die that shows an even number is a hit. You need hits equal to the difficulty level (usually 3) to pass the obstacle. When the roll is complete, discard the pool dice you used. Dont worry, you can get them back. If the roll was a success, you can proceed. If not, conditions may ease or escalate, and the obstacle continues to block your path. Either go around or try again. Difficulty Levels 2 = easy, 3 = difficult, 4 = challenging, 5 = extreme Helping If your character is in a position to help another character, you can give them a die from your pool. Say what your character does to help. If the roll fails, you get your pool die back. If it succeeds, your die is lost. BATTLE A battle is a special kind of obstacle in which your character is subject to damage. In a battle, your character suffers damage equal to the difference between his hits and the difficulty level of the obstacle. This diminishes the difficulty level of the obstacle by the number of hits as well. So, a level-5 alien monster requires five hits to overcome, and a three-hit roll against such a beast would deal 2 points of damage to your character in a counterattack. Deal with the beast with one decisive five-hit roll and your character would suffer no damage. Damage subtracts from Health. When your character runs out of Health, describe a fittingly gruesome (and heroic?) demise. Advancement When one of your characters three bullet points comes into play to the satisfaction of the Narrator, you earn an Advancement. Circle one of your characters bracketed tagsit is now available for use. Once all three of your bullet points have been suitably dramatized, you can begin using them again to earn additional advancements. Refresh Refresh your pool back to 7 dice by playing a refreshment scene with another character. This is a good time to dramatize your characters bullet points. Refreshment scenes can be flashbacks, too. DEATH When your character dies, your player pool immediately refreshes. You may still help living characters using the Helping rule. Add a detail or benefit to the scene description and roll your die.

THERE CAN BE ONLY ONE SURVIVOR.

BRAUGHER
HEALTH O O O O O O O O O O
DECK OFFICER SIX WEEKS LEFT ON EMPLOYMENT CONTRACT PARENT TO TWO BACK ON EARTH DIVORCED AND GLAD EX-TROUBLEMAKER Run | Grab | B&E | Dirty Fighting [Gunplay] | [Dodge] COMPANY EMPLOYEE Access Routes | Communications | Bullshit Artist Tough | Clamber | [Drive] | [Politics] MECHANIC Improvise Tool | Repair | Good w/Machines Perceptive | Toolkit | [Dextrous] | [Sabotage] TRICKY Quick | Agile | Escape | Sneaky [Knife] | [Unexpected Strike]

CONDITIONS O O O O O O
LOST CORNERED CRAZED HUNTED TAPPED DEAD

 RULES SUMMARY
Rolling the Dice When you try to overcome an obstacle, you roll dice. Start with one die. Add a die if you have a trait that can help you. If that trait has any tags that apply, add another die for each tag. Finally, add any number of dice from your personal pool of dice (your pool starts with 7 dice). Roll all the dice youve gathered. Each die that shows an even number is a hit. You need hits equal to the difficulty level (usually 3) to pass the obstacle. When the roll is complete, discard the pool dice you used. Dont worry, you can get them back. If the roll was a success, you can proceed. If not, conditions may ease or escalate, and the obstacle continues to block your path. Either go around or try again. Difficulty Levels 2 = easy, 3 = difficult, 4 = challenging, 5 = extreme Helping If your character is in a position to help another character, you can give them a die from your pool. Say what your character does to help. If the roll fails, you get your pool die back. If it succeeds, your die is lost. BATTLE A battle is a special kind of obstacle in which your character is subject to damage. In a battle, your character suffers damage equal to the difference between his hits and the difficulty level of the obstacle. This diminishes the difficulty level of the obstacle by the number of hits as well. So, a level-5 alien monster requires five hits to overcome, and a three-hit roll against such a beast would deal 2 points of damage to your character in a counterattack. Deal with the beast with one decisive five-hit roll and your character would suffer no damage. Damage subtracts from Health. When your character runs out of Health, describe a fittingly gruesome (and heroic?) demise. Advancement When one of your characters three bullet points comes into play to the satisfaction of the Narrator, you earn an Advancement. Circle one of your characters bracketed tagsit is now available for use. Once all three of your bullet points have been suitably dramatized, you can begin using them again to earn additional advancements. Refresh Refresh your pool back to 7 dice by playing a refreshment scene with another character. This is a good time to dramatize your characters bullet points. Refreshment scenes can be flashbacks, too. DEATH When your character dies, your player pool immediately refreshes. You may still help living characters using the Helping rule. Add a detail or benefit to the scene description and roll your die.

THERE CAN BE ONLY ONE SURVIVOR.

COSTICH
HEALTH O O O O O O O O O O
SECURITY AGENT KNIGHTSBRIDGE MILITARY CONTRACTOR SAW COMBAT ON ANOTHER FAILED COLONY TECHNICALLY STILL MARRIED MERCENARY Opportunistic | Fast | Disloyal | Tough | Callous [Overkill] | [Careful] EX-COLONIAL MARINE SOP | Shooting | Body Armor | Battle-hardened [Hail of Lead] | [Great Poise] KEEN Sense Motive | Spot Liar | Quick | Perceptive [Sense Danger] | [Traps] PHILOSOPHER Grim Determination | Big Picture | Calm | Supportive [Quote Philosophy] | [Perfect Clarity]

CONDITIONS O O O O O O
LOST CORNERED CRAZED HUNTED TAPPED DEAD

 RULES SUMMARY
Rolling the Dice When you try to overcome an obstacle, you roll dice. Start with one die. Add a die if you have a trait that can help you. If that trait has any tags that apply, add another die for each tag. Finally, add any number of dice from your personal pool of dice (your pool starts with 7 dice). Roll all the dice youve gathered. Each die that shows an even number is a hit. You need hits equal to the difficulty level (usually 3) to pass the obstacle. When the roll is complete, discard the pool dice you used. Dont worry, you can get them back. If the roll was a success, you can proceed. If not, conditions may ease or escalate, and the obstacle continues to block your path. Either go around or try again. Difficulty Levels 2 = easy, 3 = difficult, 4 = challenging, 5 = extreme Helping If your character is in a position to help another character, you can give them a die from your pool. Say what your character does to help. If the roll fails, you get your pool die back. If it succeeds, your die is lost. BATTLE A battle is a special kind of obstacle in which your character is subject to damage. In a battle, your character suffers damage equal to the difference between his hits and the difficulty level of the obstacle. This diminishes the difficulty level of the obstacle by the number of hits as well. So, a level-5 alien monster requires five hits to overcome, and a three-hit roll against such a beast would deal 2 points of damage to your character in a counterattack. Deal with the beast with one decisive five-hit roll and your character would suffer no damage. Damage subtracts from Health. When your character runs out of Health, describe a fittingly gruesome (and heroic?) demise. Advancement When one of your characters three bullet points comes into play to the satisfaction of the Narrator, you earn an Advancement. Circle one of your characters bracketed tagsit is now available for use. Once all three of your bullet points have been suitably dramatized, you can begin using them again to earn additional advancements. Refresh Refresh your pool back to 7 dice by playing a refreshment scene with another character. This is a good time to dramatize your characters bullet points. Refreshment scenes can be flashbacks, too. DEATH When your character dies, your player pool immediately refreshes. You may still help living characters using the Helping rule. Add a detail or benefit to the scene description and roll your die.

THERE CAN BE ONLY ONE SURVIVOR.

MARKHAM
HEALTH O O O O O O O O O O
COMPANY OFFICER RECOVERING FROM A BAD COLD TRYING TO SCORE POINTS WITH BIOTECH EXECS ENGAGED TO BE MARRIED CORPORATE OPERATIVE Backbone | Cold-hearted | Cutting Stare | Negotiator [Sportsmans Physique] | [Programming] TECHNOCRAT Satellite Phone | Company Passkey | Computer Savvy RFID Tag | [Emergency Beacon] | [Authorize] EXECUTIVE OFFICER That Smile | That Haircut | Designer Suit | Wealth High-Level Clearance | [Connections] | [Combat Simulator Experience] CUNNING Deception | Codes | Misdirection | Eavesdrop [Sneak] | [Hide]

CONDITIONS O O O O O O
LOST CORNERED CRAZED HUNTED TAPPED DEAD

 RULES SUMMARY
Rolling the Dice When you try to overcome an obstacle, you roll dice. Start with one die. Add a die if you have a trait that can help you. If that trait has any tags that apply, add another die for each tag. Finally, add any number of dice from your personal pool of dice (your pool starts with 7 dice). Roll all the dice youve gathered. Each die that shows an even number is a hit. You need hits equal to the difficulty level (usually 3) to pass the obstacle. When the roll is complete, discard the pool dice you used. Dont worry, you can get them back. If the roll was a success, you can proceed. If not, conditions may ease or escalate, and the obstacle continues to block your path. Either go around or try again. Difficulty Levels 2 = easy, 3 = difficult, 4 = challenging, 5 = extreme Helping If your character is in a position to help another character, you can give them a die from your pool. Say what your character does to help. If the roll fails, you get your pool die back. If it succeeds, your die is lost. BATTLE A battle is a special kind of obstacle in which your character is subject to damage. In a battle, your character suffers damage equal to the difference between his hits and the difficulty level of the obstacle. This diminishes the difficulty level of the obstacle by the number of hits as well. So, a level-5 alien monster requires five hits to overcome, and a three-hit roll against such a beast would deal 2 points of damage to your character in a counterattack. Deal with the beast with one decisive five-hit roll and your character would suffer no damage. Damage subtracts from Health. When your character runs out of Health, describe a fittingly gruesome (and heroic?) demise. Advancement When one of your characters three bullet points comes into play to the satisfaction of the Narrator, you earn an Advancement. Circle one of your characters bracketed tagsit is now available for use. Once all three of your bullet points have been suitably dramatized, you can begin using them again to earn additional advancements. Refresh Refresh your pool back to 7 dice by playing a refreshment scene with another character. This is a good time to dramatize your characters bullet points. Refreshment scenes can be flashbacks, too. DEATH When your character dies, your player pool immediately refreshes. You may still help living characters using the Helping rule. Add a detail or benefit to the scene description and roll your die.

THERE CAN BE ONLY ONE SURVIVOR.

SAITO
HEALTH O O O O O O O O O O
FREIGHT OFFICER JUST RENEWED A 6-YEAR DUTY CONTRACT VISITED MORE THAN 24 WORLDS ALWAYS WANTED TO SEE AN ALIEN DEBAUCHEE Iron Stomach | Fraternizer | Witty | Persuasive [Fast Friends] | [Unfazed] COMPANY MAN Resolute | Gallows Humor | Medium Clearance RFID Tag | [Communications] | [Scanner] STRONGBACK Heave | Steady Hands | High Pain Threshold | Brawl Grip | [Crush] | [Unshakeable] STARSHIP OFFICER Drive | Ship Systems | Power Loader | Repair [Clamber] | [Pilot]

CONDITIONS O O O O O O
LOST CORNERED CRAZED HUNTED TAPPED DEAD

 RULES SUMMARY
Rolling the Dice When you try to overcome an obstacle, you roll dice. Start with one die. Add a die if you have a trait that can help you. If that trait has any tags that apply, add another die for each tag. Finally, add any number of dice from your personal pool of dice (your pool starts with 7 dice). Roll all the dice youve gathered. Each die that shows an even number is a hit. You need hits equal to the difficulty level (usually 3) to pass the obstacle. When the roll is complete, discard the pool dice you used. Dont worry, you can get them back. If the roll was a success, you can proceed. If not, conditions may ease or escalate, and the obstacle continues to block your path. Either go around or try again. Difficulty Levels 2 = easy, 3 = difficult, 4 = challenging, 5 = extreme Helping If your character is in a position to help another character, you can give them a die from your pool. Say what your character does to help. If the roll fails, you get your pool die back. If it succeeds, your die is lost. BATTLE A battle is a special kind of obstacle in which your character is subject to damage. In a battle, your character suffers damage equal to the difference between his hits and the difficulty level of the obstacle. This diminishes the difficulty level of the obstacle by the number of hits as well. So, a level-5 alien monster requires five hits to overcome, and a three-hit roll against such a beast would deal 2 points of damage to your character in a counterattack. Deal with the beast with one decisive five-hit roll and your character would suffer no damage. Damage subtracts from Health. When your character runs out of Health, describe a fittingly gruesome (and heroic?) demise. Advancement When one of your characters three bullet points comes into play to the satisfaction of the Narrator, you earn an Advancement. Circle one of your characters bracketed tagsit is now available for use. Once all three of your bullet points have been suitably dramatized, you can begin using them again to earn additional advancements. Refresh Refresh your pool back to 7 dice by playing a refreshment scene with another character. This is a good time to dramatize your characters bullet points. Refreshment scenes can be flashbacks, too. DEATH When your character dies, your player pool immediately refreshes. You may still help living characters using the Helping rule. Add a detail or benefit to the scene description and roll your die.

THERE CAN BE ONLY ONE SURVIVOR.

JOHANESSON
HEALTH O O O O O O O O O O
COMPANY SCI-TECH ESCAPED CAPTURE BY COLONIAL MILITIA DID BIOTECH EXPERIMENTS WITH COLONISTS SPOUSE IS FROZEN ON SHIP FOR TRANSPORT SCIENTIST Rational | Computer Savvy | Systematic | Selfless | [Cool Detachment] | [Programming] COLONIST Hearty | Resolved | Patient | Charitable | RFID Tag | [Firearms] | [Tough As Leather] TARGET Flee | Hide | Notice | Perseverence | [Dash] | [Shake It Off] VICTIM Resigned | Angry | Tough | Vengeful | Brash | [Brutal] | [Fearless]

CONDITIONS O O O O O O
LOST CORNERED CRAZED HUNTED TAPPED DEAD